Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are commonly produced in the combustion of fossil fuels and in chemical industries such as detergents and paints. VOCs in atmosphere cause different degrees of harm to human bodies and environments. Adsorption has become one of the most concerned methods to remove VOCs in atmosphere due to its high efficiency, simple operation and low energy consumption. Biomass-based porous carbon (BPC) has been considered as the most promising adsorption material because of the low cost and high absorption rate. In this paper, the key characteristic (e.g., specific surface area, pore structure, surface functional groups and basic composition) of BPC affecting the adsorption of VOCs in atmosphere were analyzed. The improvement of adsorption capacity of BPC by common modification methods, such as surface oxidation, surface reduction, surface loading and other modification methods, were discussed. Examples of BPC adsorption on different types of VOCs including aldehydes, ketones, aromatic VOCs, and halogenated hydrocarbons, were also reviewed. The specific adsorption mechanism was discussed. Finally, some unsolved problems and future research directions about BPC for adsorbing VOCs were propounded. This review can serve as a valuable reference for future developing effective biomass-based porous carbon VOCs adsorption technology.

A review on the adsorption of volatile organic compounds by biomass-based porous carbon (BPC) and its mechanism
    Abstract
    1 Introduction
    2 Effects of basic properties of BPC on VOCs adsorption
        2.1 Specific surface area
        2.2 Pore structure
        2.3 Surface functional groups
        2.4 Elementary composition
        2.5 Summary of this chapter
    3 Modification methods of BPC
        3.1 Oxidation modification method
        3.2 Reduction modification method
        3.3 The material loading modification method
        3.4 Additional modification method
    4 Adsorption of various types of VOCs
        4.1 Adsorption of oxygenated VOCs
            4.1.1 Adsorption of aldehydes
            4.1.2 Adsorption of ketones
        4.2 Adsorption of aromatic VOCs
        4.3 Adsorption of halohydrocarbons
        4.4 Multicomponent competitive adsorption
    5 Adsorption mechanism
        5.1 Van der Waals forces
        5.2 π–π stacking
        5.3 Electrostatic interaction
        5.4 Distribution and pore-filling
        5.5 Combined adsorption mechanism
    6 Perspectives
    7 Conclusion
    Acknowledgements 
    References

• Haifan Yang(College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China)
• Guannan Liang(Beijing Green State Environmental Engineering Co., Ltd., Beijing 100000, People’s Republic of China)
• Xinyang Sun(College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China)
• Simiao Wu(College of Food Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Grain Circulation and Safety, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China)